Surf Rock Radio Special 2

This episode of Hippie Love Turbo, on KUCR 88.3 FM was springy, full of twang, and had a hint of sandy residue. Yes, it was another Surf Special! This year's surf special was packed full of tunes and, like most of the songs you heard on this episode, I didn't have much to say. However, I did mention some of my favorite beach activities, such as exploring the caves and coves along the southern California coastline.

Some of my personal favorite coastline caves are in Malibu, both at Leo Carrillo State Beach
and El Matador State Beach which are only about 6 miles apart. Of course, if you want to check out tide pools and rock features a little closer to Riverside, you can always check out some cool beaches in Laguna including: the Beach Cave at Thousand Steps Beach and the coves at Treasure Island Beach. I'd like to visit some more coastal rock formations this summer and am curious to what your favorites are, so let me know!

Koxa's record breaking moment as seen in this video

Later on in the episode you heard The Vaqueros play their song 80-Foot Wave and I talked a bit about how, back in 2018, professional surfer Rodrigo Koxa actually surfed an 80-foot wave in Nazaré, Portugal, smashing any previous big wave surfing records. Seeing the photographs and video of the event are awe-inspiring but I could only image how stressful watching Koxa's feat live, let alone being the man on the surfboard. Of course, watching the videos you can see the importance of Koxa keeping his cool because any misstep would certainly lead to disaster. If you have a hard time visualizing what an 80 foot wave would look like, imagine a wave reaching about halfway up UCR's Belltower!

Thanks for reading the blog and be sure to listen over the air on KUCR 88.3FM on Saturdays at 9pm, or on Mondays at 10pm PST. You can also listen through KUCR.org, Radio Garden, or Tune-In. 

You can check out the playlist for this year's salty surf special below:

 

The Vaqueros - 80 Foot Wave

Death In The West, Tattooed Marlboro Men, and Some Garage Rock - Hippie Love Turbo Radio Show - Code Word "Lemongrass"

On this episode of Hippie Love Turbo, on KUCR 88.3 FM you heard some wild tunes including one by Mark Markham & The Jesters named Goin' Back to Marlboro Country.  

Various Marlboro advertisements targeting women

 

If you aren't familiar with Marlboro Country, it was part of Philip Morris' advertising campaign which helped steer the Marlboro cigarette brand away from earlier attempts to capture a female audience towards a presumably larger or more loyal male customer base. According an article from March 23rd, 1927 in Advertising & Selling, Marlboro was one of the first tobacco companies to specifically target women. At the time advertising to women smokers was considered taboo despite the fact that there was a large female smoker market, which was estimated to bring in revenue in the hundreds of millions. Supposedly, the early campaigns were so successful that Philip Morris received positive unsolicited mail from various female costumers, praising the product, which was fairly unheard of at the time. As the advertisements continued to gain success, Marlboro strengthened their focus on their female audience and, according to an article in the July 15th, 1957 issue of Newsweek, the company developed its signature flip top packaging as a way of protecting their cigarettes from the smell of perfume that often accompanies the inside of a woman's purse. However, as Marlboro later began using tattooed men in their advertisements, the box was instead touted as a way of preventing the cigarettes from being crushed while simultaneously keeping them fresh.

An example of some of Marlboro's goofy tattooed men ads

I'm not sure what led Philip Morris to change their advertising tactics, but the early masculine focused campaigns are pretty laughable by today's standards with advertisements featuring slogans such as: "A lot of man...a lot of cigarette.", "Man-size taste of honest tobacco comes full through.", and "Where there's a man...there's a Marlboro."

During Marlboro's venture towards masculine advertising, they eventually began using cowboys and western themes which led to the creation of the famous Marlboro Man ads which lasted until the late '90s and kicked off their use of the phrase "Come To Marlboro Country." 

John Holmes as seen in Death In The West

Although the Marlboro Man ad campaign lasted for several decades it was often targeted by critics for its romantic depictions of smoking. One of the first successful attacks against the brand's advertisements and the effects of smoking, took place in 1976 with a television documentary directed by Martin Smith titled Death in The West. The film follows several men that fit the hard working, masculine, rancher profile of the Marlboro Man, however, with more realistic portrayals of the chronic smoker. Visually, the most impactful depiction is of John Holmes, who suffered from emphysema and it seen working with an oxygen tank as he describes his health struggles as feeling; "as if someone has their fingers down in my chest." Dispersed throughout the film are testimonies by doctors and Philip Morris executives that serve as counterpoints either downplaying the effects of smoking or emphasizing the harm cause by cigarettes. 

John Holmes as seen in Death In The West

After the Death in The West first aired on British television Philip Morris acted swiftly and sued the filmmakers and Thames Television, who first broadcasted the show, in order to block any future rebroadcasts, particularly in the US. Mother Jones magazine described the film as being "one of the most powerful anti-smoking films ever made" and explained in an article from January 1979, that it was unlikely that wider audiences would ever see the film due to Philip Morris' legal battles with Thames Television. Eventually the documentary did make its way to American audiences via PBS stations in various markets. You can view the film here and read about some of Marlboro's models' deaths from cancer, here.

Anywho, that's some insight into the strange world of cigarette advertisements and although it was loosely related to the episode (very loosely), I thank you for reading the blog. Be sure to listen over the air on KUCR 88.3FM on Saturdays at 9pm, or on Mondays at 10pm PST. You can also listen through KUCR.org, Radio Garden, or Tune-In.

You can listen to this episode's playlist below:

 

The Choab - I'm Not Your Steppin' Stone
The Moguls - Ski Bum
Esquires - Heat
Mark Markham & The Jesters - Goin' Back to Marlboro Country

Terry Knight, Don Gardner, and Covers By Tom Jones - Hippie Love Turbo Radio Show - Code Word "Cardoon"

On this episode of Hippie Love Turbo, on KUCR 88.3 FM I kept the talking parts pretty brief, so here is a quick rundown on some of the stuff I talked about:

I started the show with Terry Knight and The Pack's song How Much More and I mentioned that the group had a hit with their version of I (Who Have Nothing) which was also covered by Ben E. King and, perhaps more famously, Tom Jones. Here's a neat video of the group making a television appearance back in 1966. During the video, Terry is briefly interviewed as he talks about being from Flint, Michigan before the group "performs" on some bleachers.

Later on, you heard Don Gardner perform My Baby Likes To Boogaloo and, much like Terry Knight, Gardner also performed a song that Tom Jones covered. However, unlike Terry Knight and The Pack, Don Gardner co-wrote his hit, I Need Your Lovin'. My favorite version of the song, beyond the original, is Otis Redding's version from his first album Pain In My Heart.

 

House of The Rising Sun as interpreted by AI

 

When I played Gary Indiana's own Oscar Hamod and The Majestics' No Chance Baby, I talked about how they performed a fuzzed out psychedelic version of House of The Rising Sun and how I'll probably play it sometime in the future. Well, if you are impatient, I suggest checking it out!

That's just about it for this episode! Thanks for reading the blog and be sure to listen over the air on KUCR 88.3FM on Saturdays at 9pm, or on Mondays at 10pm PST. You can also listen through KUCR.org, Radio Garden, or Tune-In.

You can listen to this episode's playlist below:

 

Terry Knight and The Pack - How Much More
The Caravelles - Lovin' Just My Style
Thee Kavaliers - Congregation For Anti Flirts Inc.
Headhunters - Times We Share
The Stoned Circus - Feel

The Many Boots That Are Made For Walkin' - Hippie Love Turbo Radio Show - Code Word "Soursop"

On this episode of Hippie Love Turbo, on KUCR 88.3 FM we started the show off with a Spanish cover of These Boots Are Made for Walkin' which was written by Lee Hazlewood and first recorded by Nancy Sinatra. There have been many covers of the song over the years with the most popular versions performed by Jessica Simpson for the soundtrack of the 2005 film adaptation of The Dukes of Hazzard and Billy Ray Cyrus' rendition on his debut album Some Gave All (1992). A somewhat unexpected version of the song was featured on Megadeth's 1985 album Killing Is My Business... and Business Is Good! featuring altered lyrics which didn't sit well with Lee Hazlewood. Eventually Hazelwood asked the band to remove the song from future releases of their album which they complied with, for the most part, as some copies of the album contain censored recordings of song with the offending lyrics intact in the liner notes. In 2018 the band released another special edition of Killing Is My Business which featured a version of the song with newly recorded lyrics that matched Hazlewood's original. 

The Boot as seen on The Simpsons

 

The cover you heard on this episode (Gloria Benavides' Esta Botas Son Para Caminar) is one of the few versions in Spanish but other bands from Latin America have also covered the song, mostly sung in English or performed as instrumentals. The Mexican instrumental group Los Aragón released a fun version in 1966, The Hang Tens (Peru) featured the song as a B-side on their sole single release, and the only other Spanish version I found was performed by Mexican pop singer Pyly Gaos.

And for all those folks out there that like punk covers, there are quite a few of them as well by bands like 7 Seconds, Operation Ivy, The Oppressed, Genocide Superstars, and Pure Hell.

The song has been covered to death but if there are any other covers of the song that y'all like, especially non-English versions, I'd love to hear about them in the comments!

Thanks for checking out the blog and be sure to listen over the air on KUCR 88.3FM on Saturdays at 9pm, or on Mondays at 10pm PST. You can also listen through KUCR.org, Radio Garden, or Tune-In. You can find this episode's playlist below.

"Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind" Review and Another Garage Rock Playlist - Hippie Love Turbo Radio Show - Code Word "Sugar-Apple"

On this episode of Hippie Love Turbo, on KUCR 88.3 FM I really didn't speak too much beyond announcing the tracks I played so instead I'd like to focus on this week's movie suggestion. 

Earlier this week I watched the 2020 documentary on the actress Natalie Wood titled What Remains Behind which admirably focuses more on her career and life as a mother rather than her mysterious demise which, unfortunately, has overshadowed her accomplishments as a woman in a male dominated industry. Although the film clearly states that Wood's death is not the film's sole subject, as a viewer you can't help but feel like you are watching a movie in which you already know the ending, and in a sense, you cannot help but watch without a sense of dread or macabre curiosity. 

 

However, Wood's life is such an interesting subject that you soon begin to feel as though the film would have been better suited as a miniseries. You rush through decades of film history with passing glances of Wood's troubled upbringing and all but slight mentions of important moments in the young actress' career such as when she was suspended by Warner Brothers over what they claimed was financial disputes but was later found to be problems surrounding the roles Wood was given and, more importantly, her input over the roles in which she was cast. Of course, Wood's love life and other more salacious tabloid-esque topics are covered in the film as well but, as with most things in the documentary, everything happens so quickly that you don't have a chance to unwrap what's being presented to you. Again, you can write much of that off due to the film's runtime, but one glaring issue with the film is how it seems that the narrative was closely guided, and perhaps completely steered by Wood's family, especially her eldest daughter Natasha Gregson Wagner who serves as the film's host.

Home movie footage of Wood and Wagner

 

Whenever you get glimpses of the more controversial parts of Wood's life the film quickly pivots or minimizes the events as if they felt the need to address the issues without exploring them more in depth. One example that stood out to me most was a suicide attempt by Wood in which she purposefully took a large amount of sleeping pills but in a moment of clarity she sought the help of her friend Mart Crowley, who was able to get Wood the medical assistance which ultimately saved her life. While discussing the event, Gregson Wagner explains how she views the moment as a "cry for help" and how she doesn't view the event as a legitimate suicide attempt because, in Gregson Wagner's words: "After she swallowed the pills, she banged on Mart’s door so obviously, she wanted to live." After that, we are briefly shown how Wood sought out therapy which helped her find mental clarity.

As the film continues there are moments that serve as a sort of love letter from a family still mourning the sudden loss of a mother. After the film's halfway point, we are presented with home recordings and archival footage of Wood with her friends and family boating, talking at social events, and simply enjoying life. You see a young mother that seeks to live a normal, albeit more grandiose life, surrounded by those she cares about most and, if you take the viewpoint of her children, you understand why the film chooses to focus on Wood's motherhood. Although Wood was an extremely famous actress, to her children, she was simply a mother and, much like our own mothers, she should not be defined solely by her occupation. 

Robert Wagner interviewed by his step-daughter Natasha

Unfortunately, the family's influence on the documentary becomes ever apparent once you reach the film's climax. When exploring Wood's death, we are presented with one of the film's lengthier interviews which is between Natasha Gregson Wagner and her step-father Robert Wagner, who Gregson Wagner affectionately calls "Daddy Wagner." The sole purpose of the interview is to establish Wagner's innocence surrounding Wood's mysterious demise and place blame on the media for continued exposure on what Wood's family believes is an open and shut case of an accidental death. During this section of the film, we are presented with the disgusting way in which the media hounded the Wood family and disregarded their privacy by photographing them in vulnerable moments including Wood's burial. Soon, Wood's sister Lana Wood, as well as the captain of Wood's yacht, Dennis Davern, are presented as cash hungry and exploitative due to their continued calls to re-open the investigation into the night of Wood's death. Davern famously wrote his own explanation of Wood's passing and later stated that he was pressured by Robert Wagner to stay silent about what really happened to Wood. To me, the press, as well as, Davern and Lana Wood's portrayals are obviously skewed by the family's emphasis on Robert Wagner's innocence.

Ultimately, we'll most likely never know what happened that night near Santa Catalina Island but the film's tone towards the event doesn't help bring us any closer towards clarity regardless of the family's wishes for the world to move on. Despite all the flaws I listed above, I still think the film is worth checking out for its intimate glimpses into Wood's life and for its ability to humanize a former star whose life was lost just as she was hitting another stride in her career. Although there are hints of an agenda set by Wood's family, it is touching seeing their point of view with regards to how their time was spent with their mother. You get a stronger sense of loss by hearing Wood's family and friends talk about her than you would by reading all the accounts surrounding her death. With the film's short runtime you can't expect to dive too deeply into the totality of Natalie Wood's life but, for what it's worth, this film is one of the most detailed documentaries based on the actress' life beyond the mystery surrounding her death.

And that's it for this week's post! It may have been more of a review than most of the other posts but I appreciate you sticking through to find this week's playlist below. Be sure to listen over the air on KUCR 88.3FM on Saturdays at 9pm, or on Mondays at 10pm PST. You can also listen through KUCR.org, Radio Garden, or Tune-In.

 

The Heard - Poppies
The Good Feelins - Shattered

Paul Martin and Skinnie Minnie! Hippie Love Turbo Radio Show - Code Word "Silverbeet"

On this episode of Hippie Love Turbo, on KUCR 88.3 FM you heard a fuzzy and somewhat moody banger by an unusual artist that went by the name Paul Martin. During the 1960s Martin released two singles, one through the Philadelphia based Impex Records and the other via his own label Rodin Records. In the 90s the singles were combined with a series of unreleased demos to make up a self-titled album released by Distortions Records and in 2016, the recordings were remastered and compiled again, this time adding an additional unreleased track, The Children. These versions were released on an album titled It Happened by Out-Sider Records. 

Paul Martin singing The Last Remains of Our Love

 

If you are interested in buying either the Distortions or Out-Sider releases I'd say there isn't much of a difference between the two but, Out-Sider's definitely has the better liner notes and is more accessible nowadays. To me, the most interesting tracks on either release are the more garage rock type songs but there aren't many. Most of Martin's songs are less appealing jangley affairs that, while worthy of a listen, probably won't stand out too much to most people. I found myself skipping a few tracks that include horn sections, but maybe that's just me. Horn sections are by far my least favorite thing about 60s rock and are the reason I often find myself ignoring a lot of music that's categorized as Sunshine Pop. Curiously, each release omits the B-side to Martin's first release I Can't Stay Here Anymore which I haven't been able to find anywhere online. If I were to guess why the track has seemingly disappeared, I'd probably say the track was left out for royalty reasons.

And now I'll quickly sum up some of the other topics I covered during this episode. 

Towards the middle of the show, you heard The Zettlers' Skinnie Minnie, which is a cover Bill Haley and The Comets' Skinny Minnie. On The Zettler's initial release, the song was incorrectly attributed to the writers of Teresa Brewer's Skinnie Minnie, which is a novelty song about a fisherman that fishes too much as he searches for a mermaid. There have been a ton of covers of Skinny Minnie over the years but some of my personal favorites are by The Sonics, The Mummies, and Gerry and the Pacemakers.

After that, you heard a song by The Wrench titled The Day Is Hard which reminded me of a video by the YouTuber Hand Tool Rescue in which he recreates an unusual wrench that was made for tightening down cone shaped fasteners. Hand Tool Rescue's process of recreating the tool is as interesting as the tool itself which, according to the video's creator, was most-likely was never made to begin with. If you like DIY or hobby machining you'll probably dig this video.

 

And finally, you heard The Four of Us perform their song Baby Blue which I mentioned was the title of a song by another group named The Warlocks. If you like early 2000s neo-psych than you probably already know The Warlocks but if you don't I'd highly suggest you start with their 2003 release Phoenix which features some of their best work including: Hurricane Heart Attack and The Dope Feels Good. Back in 2010 they played here in Riverside at The Barn and they put on quite the show.

And that's it for this episode! Thanks for reading the blog and be sure to listen over the air on KUCR 88.3FM on Saturdays at 9pm, or on Mondays at 10pm PST. You can also listen through KUCR.org, Radio Garden, or Tune-In.

You can listen to this episode's playlist below:

 

The Oxfords - Time and Place
The Interns - Sally Met Molly
The Zettlers - Skinnie Minnie
The Expressions - One More Night

Freediving Back From The Grave - Hippie Love Turbo Radio Show - Code Word "Coriander"

This episode of Hippie Love Turbo, on KUCR 88.3 FM left my head spinning with all the psyched-out guitars, wild basslines, and beastly garage rock drums. Besides the music, let's check out some of the topics I covered.

First, you head a song by The Henchman titled Livin' which I found on Back From The Grave Volume 5. As you probably know by now, I really dig the Pebbles and Nuggets compilations, however, the genres float around quite a bit over each release whereas the Back From The Grave series is laser focused on garage rock. Back From The Grave differentiates itself with its gritty, almost punk sounds, but what stands out most is how the series features a ton of obscure bands that were often overlooked on earlier and more popular comps. I won't pretend that every song on each volume of Back From The Grave is perfect, but there are a lot more hits than misses which, unfortunately, can't be said about most compilations. 

Guillaume Néryas seen in this National Geographic short

 

Later in the show you heard a song by Ronnie Fuller named Do The Dive and, as is tradition, the title of the song led me to ramble on about another semi-related topic. This time it was freediving, which is a type of diving which requires a minimal amount of equipment with a heavy focus on breath holding techniques and physical endurance. If you haven't seen it before, beware, because just watching people freedive can be enough to make your pulse race. Fun stuff.

And quickly I'll mention the last two things I touched on, such as the wide assortment of wheelie world records, and Disney's recycled animations, as seen in 1973's Robin Hood. Exciting stuff.

Anywho, that's it for this episode! Thanks for reading the blog and be sure to listen over the air on KUCR 88.3FM on Saturdays at 9pm, or on Mondays at 10pm PST. You can also listen through KUCR.org, Radio Garden, or Tune-In.

You can listen to this episode's playlist below:

 

The Vestells - Won't You Tell Me
Ronnie Fuller - Do The Dive
Soul Inc. - You Better Get A Move On
The Hysterics - Everything's There

Night of The Living Dead's Unidentified Music Box Melody and The Fun Sons - Hippie Love Turbo Radio Show - Code Word "Chayote"

We started this episode of Hippie Love Turbo, on KUCR 88.3 FM with a song by The Fun Sons titled: Don't Hold It Against Me which is the B-side on their Hang Ten single. If the name Fun Sons sounds familiar, you may recognize them from the soundtrack of the 2016 action video game Mafia III. Of course, The Fun Sons wasn't really a band but rather one of Question Mark and The Mysterians' aliases. According to the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends Hall of Fame (whew!) Question Mark and The Mysterians were pressured to quickly put out more singles in order to bank on their recent success with 96 Tears. During this time the band's label, Cameo-Parkway, released another single by the group, this time a novelty surf record under the band name The Semi-Colons. Did Cameo succeed in squeezing out a couple more hits from The Mysterians? Maybe, but it wasn't enough to keep the label from folding and being sold in 1967. 

As the show went on you heard The Rebels perform their cover of The Zombies' song It's Alright With Me which I found, along with another artist you heard on this episode Moha Jamin, on a compilation titled: Pebbles Vol. 10, Iran Pt. 1, Originals Artifacts from the Psychedelic Era. There are two volumes floating around the web but I couldn't really find a lot of information about most of the artists.

 

Anywho, because I mentioned The Zombies I went on a little tangent about the music box that appears in 1968's Night of the Living Dead. If you haven't seen the film, there's a scene around 20 minutes in where one of the main characters finds an unusual and creepy sounding music box which, along with her recent trauma, leaves her in a momentary stupor. The automaton music box features lovely moving doors which open and close, however, according to Joe Kane's 2010 book Night of The Living Dead: Behind The Scenes of The Most Terrifying Zombie Movie Ever the melody that plays during the scene actually came from another music box which belonged to Karl Hardman, who co-produced the film and played one of the more hostile characters, Harry Cooper. The origin of the haunting melody appears to be lost to time as many people have failed to properly identify the song but maybe someone out there can let us all know what it is.

Well, that's it for this episode's summary! Thanks for reading the blog and be sure to listen over the air on KUCR 88.3FM on Saturdays at 9pm, or on Mondays at 10pm. You can also listen through KUCR.org, Radio Garden, or Tune-In.

Check out this episode's playlist below:

 

The Grodes - Cry A Little Longer

From Rockabilly to Psych and then to Polka? Hippie Love Turbo Radio Show - Code Word "Garlic"

On this episode of Hippie Love Turbo, on KUCR 88.3 FM we kicked things off with a song by Tony Church and The Crusade named Can You Picture Yourself. The A-side to the groups' only single, a song named Love Trip, is a moody track with some wild tape delay and a vocal styling reminiscent of Eric Burdon. I'm sure it'll work its way into a future episode but if you are interested in hearing more work by Tony you can check out another single that he released with his brother Rocky Chirchiglia's band featuring the songs A Car and Oh! By The Way. Unlike Love Trip or Can You Picture Yourself Tony's other single can be classified as rockabilly and follows the normal conventions of the genre, almost to a fault. At the time Rocky Chirchiglia was known for his work in the rockabilly genre but over time he became more popular through his Italian and polka music. A lot of Rocky's work is somewhat scattered and difficult to find online but if you are interested in hearing some of his live performances there is an older YouTube account that's posted some of his work at various events in the Youngstown, Ohio area.

Rocky Chirchiglia via  RockyChirchigliaBand

 

After Tony Church and The Crusade, you heard Dirty Shame, a song performed by a group from the Bronx named The Age of Reason. Although The Age of Reason featured Larry Russell on drums he's better known as the bassist that played with Billy Joel during his first tour including the famous Sigma Sound Studios performance for WMMR on April 15, 1972. For many years, the set was shared unofficially through bootlegs until it was featured on an enhanced version of Joel's Piano Man that was released by Sony in 2011. If you are interested in learning more about The Age of Reason and Larry Russell there is a small article on Garage Hangover, as well as, a short video where Larry discusses The Age of Reason and how he first became involved with Billy Joel.

Later on, you heard the band Wimple Winch and I spoke about how their work was compiled into two releases, The Wimple Winch Story: 1963-1968 and The Wimple Winch Story Volume 2: 1966-1968 The Psychedelic Years. The two compilations are somewhat confusing because volume one appears to have all the same tracks that appear on Volume 2 whereas Volume 2 simply omits the band's earlier tracks from when they were known as Four Just Men. To add to the confusion there was another compilation released in 2020 named Just Four Men 1964-1968 which has some live performances and alternative takes. If you only have time to check out one release (of if you are more interested in pop psych music) I'd suggest you stick to Volume 2 because it features the band's best output. You can read more about the group on Manchester Beat.

That's it for now, folks. Thanks for tuning in and for reading the blog! Don't forget that you can listen over the air on KUCR 88.3FM on Saturdays at 9pm or through KUCR.org. If you'd like, you can also listen to KUCR through Radio Garden or Tune-In.

You can listen to this episode's playlist below:

 

The Age of Reason - Dirty Shame
The Nightwatch - Too Long
The Last Knights - Twenty-Four Hours A Day

Neon Plastic Army Men and Unknown Garage Rock - Hippie Love Turbo Radio Show - Code Word "Rambutan"

This episode of Hippie Love Turbo, on KUCR 88.3 FM was full of fuzz and grit. Sort of like your bellybutton except with a better backbeat. However, there were a few non-fuzzed out tracks throughout this show including a jangling song by a mysterious unnamed band.

The track Look For Me Babe has been attributed to a band named The Unknown but according to Teenbeat Mayhem!, the most informational book on regional rock from the 60s, the song was recorded by a long forgotten group. The confusion appears to come from a bootleg released by Moxie, a label from L.A.that specialized in releasing extremely rare and lost rock music. Back in 1977 Moxie released a single with two songs attributed to The Unknown; Look For Me Babe and Bluejean Man. If you listen to the two songs back-to-back it becomes apparent that the songs were performed by different artists. Look For Me Babe has an almost country sounding groove with singing that's practically spoken versus Bluejean Man which has the typical youthful strained vocal sound and semi-tuned guitars found in many countless garage rock songs. According to a list of every known Moxie release, the initial version of the single also features 2 songs by Frank Zappa as a B-side. I'd argue that the first release shows how Moxie was a bit fast and loose with how they compiled their releases further cementing that the band is most likely an unknown group rather than a band named The Unknown. Either way it's a fun little tune and the mystery behind it adds to its charm. 

Plastic army men as seen in Our Favorite Toys (1997)

As the show continued, I went on a little rant about the history of little green plastic army men and how the Vietnam War briefly changed how the toys were marketed. According to David Bergman, the CEO of Processed Plastics, a now defunct company that made a giant share of the green army men after acquiring another toy manufacturer Tim Mee Toys in 1965, there was a small downturn in sales due to anti-war sentiments in the US towards the end of the war. During an interview on the Discovery Channel documentary Our Favorite Toys (1997) Bergman stated that:

"During the end of Vietnam War, basically to take care of the decline in the sales of the figures, we decided to go to a neon type blues, bright oranges, reds to help keep our figure sales up."

Whether or not the new colors helped sales doesn't appear to be known to the public, however, I find it interesting that more hasn't been written on the subject. Although I clearly remember bright blue and red cowboys and headdress adorned Native Americans, I've never seen neon toy soldiers as described in the documentary. If you are interested in reading more about the little plastic guys I suggest you check out Plastic Today's brief historical write up, Toy Solider HQ's reviews of various army men and similar toys, as well as, a content rich blog titled World War II Plastic Toy Soldiers.

That's it for this episode's summary! Thanks for reading the blog and be sure to listen over the air on KUCR 88.3FM on Saturdays at 9pm or through KUCR.org. If you'd like, you can also listen to KUCR through Radio Garden or Tune-In.

You can listen to this episode's playlist below:

 

Thorns - I Want You
Haymarket Riot - Something Else
The Bad Seeds - A Taste of The Same
Front Page News - Thoughts
The Basement Wall - Never Existed

Alki Point, Seattle and The Ventures-esque Stylings of Takeshi Terauchi and The Blue Jeans - Hippie Love Turbo Radio Show - Code Word "Endive"

On this episode of Hippie Love Turbo, on KUCR 88.3 FM you heard a fun, mostly instrumental, song by The Jesters named after the Seattle neighborhood Alki Point. While talking about the song I mispronounced Alki Point as Al-key rather than Al-kai (pronounced like the ki in kite) and, ironically, towards the end of the show you heard a song by Marc Bolan (lead singer/songwriter for T.Rex) and I mentioned that there is a scene in the 2017 film Baby Driver where the lead character is embarrassed by his love interest, Debora, when she corrects his mispronunciation of T.Rex as Trex. Oh well. Wouldn't be the first time I didn't say something correctly and certainly won't be the last!

Trex?

Anywho, Alki Point is a lovely peninsula in Seattle that is known for its coastal views that include both downtown Seattle and the Olympic Mountains. When most people think of Alki Point they are thinking about Alki Beach where tourists like to gather during the warmest months, which there aren't many. The beach has served as a backdrop for small to mid-sized concerts over the years such as Sub Pop’s 30th Anniversary Party in 2018. 

Photo by Asahel Curtis Photo Company (1914)

 

Continuing along the coast of Alki Point are the expected eateries, a handful of small parks, as well as, a few landmarks including: the Alki Point Lighthouse and 8 and a half foot-high copy of the Statue of Liberty which was donated to the neighborhood as part of the Boy Scouts 1950 campaign themed Strengthen The Arm of Liberty. Although 200 replicas were distributed to various cities across the US, many have been removed or replaced over the years. In fact, the statue that sits in Alki Point is a copy of the original which had to be replaced due to damage caused by the natural aging process and vandalism. Appropriately, Alki Point was settled and partially founded by a New Yorker named Lee Terry and who had originally named the settlement "New York Alki."

Towards the middle of the show, you heard another instrumental song, this time by Takeshi Terauchi and The Blue Jeans. Takeshi, aka Terry, was in several groups over the years with his Ventures style guitar work being the main focus. If you dig The Ventures you'll like Terauchi's early work with The Blue Jeans, especially the 3 volumes of Beat! Beat! Beat! which includes a couple far out covers such as: The House of The Rising Sun and Please Mr. Postman. If you aren't a fan of overly polished studio work from the 80's I'd say you should avoid their 25th anniversary album although, as I discussed in a previous episode, that kind of sound can have its own charming aesthetics.

Thanks for reading the blog and be sure to listen over the air on KUCR 88.3FM on Saturdays at 9pm or through KUCR.org! If you'd like, you can also listen to KUCR through Radio Garden or Tune-In.

You can listen to this episode's playlist below:

 

4 Score - Mini-Skirt
Mustache Wax - I'm Gonna Get You
The Squiremen Four - Bitter End